His Mother's Halloween Costume

For eight years, Jenna made Lucy's Halloween costumes by hand while Diane, her mother-in-law, arrived each year with a store-bought replacement she judged better.

Eric praised his mother's generosity and called the swap practical, never treating Jenna's late nights as labor that counted.

This season a moth costume of wire, organza, and silver paint is nearly finished when Diane appears with a glittering blue dress and a crown, already sure Lucy will wear Grandma's present to the family party.

Jenna is told her work can wait, though that later chance has never arrived.

With three days left, Eric must finally see what his wife has been carrying, what their daughter has been learning, and how costly one handmade costume can become in a later-in-life marriage pressed by family expectation.